Please Keep the Fields Clean

I know how much fun everyone has out there on the
field but we have to remember to pick up all of our trash.
Before your team leaves the fields, please make sure
that all of your trash is picked up. In the past, we have
been lucky that some of your fellow kickballers have
stayed late to help pick up left over trash.

We've got a great relationship with the T/O Thomaston
 and we don't want some trash to ruin that. We
recommend that you keep a box of trash bags in the
trunk of your car. If your team consistently leaves trash
on the field, you will lose points in the standings and wemight put your team on
permanent clean up duty.

We also need to make sure that when we are out on the fields that there are no
signs of adult beverages on the fields. If you have an exposed case of beer,
I will gladly confiscate it for later enjoyment. There should also never be any
glass bottles or anything with bottle caps on the field, cans only please.

BAD

GOOD

Rules

Kickball may be a kids game played by adults but we do have our rules and its good to know at least a good basic understanding of what they are. The good news is that the rules are easily downloadable on the kickball website at www.kickball.com/rules. It helps if your team has at least one person who knows the rules well and that person should probably be your captain or a co-captain. 

Our rules aren't perfect and we are always looking for examples where our rules can be clarified. If you ever have either a rules suggestion or a rules question you can always come up to ask me. 

At a few points during the season we will post a couple of items that may have come up in a game so that everyone can better understand the rules. If you have a suggestion for a rule that you want me to clarify, please just comment on a post or send me an email at my @kickball.com email address. 

This week we will cover just a couple of simple ones.

1.02 The strike zone is a three-dimensional irregular pentagon based on the shape of home plate and is one (1) foot in height. The front of the zone aligns with the front of home plate. The sides of the zone extend one (1) foot to either side of the plate. The back edges of the zone are one (1) foot from the back sides of the plate (see Diagram 4). The strike zone may not be marked by cones or other raised objects.

I will admit that this rule is maybe not as easy to follow as it could be, but the concept is simple. The strike zone is not just over home plate. It also extends 1 foot from home plate. In Rule 11.02a it is further stated that if any part of the ball comes within the strike zone, it can be a strike but it also needs to bounce less than a foot when it comes through the strike zone. Strikes and Fouls are counted seperately, 3 strikes you are out or 4 fouls you are out.

Another one that comes up from time to time and can cause some confusion is in relation to automatic foul balls and takes a bit of explanation.

13.02 A foul ball is:
g. a kicked ball kicked outside of the kicking box (see Rule 9.02) (see Diagram 3L, 3M)

According to WAKA's Rule's FAQ

Q: What kinds of Foul Balls can be caught for an Out? May runners tag up on such Outs?
A: All of them, except for when the ball touches a foreign object such as a batting cage or fence (13.02d). Other fouls, including kicks on or above the knee (13.02e), balls touched more than once by the kicker in the kicking box (13.02f), and balls kicked outside the kicking box (13.02g) MAY be caught for Outs, and runners may attempt to tag up and advance on them, provided the caught ball is not in the possession of the pitcher on the mound.

So basically, here is the situation that comes up from time to time. A kicker kicks the ball either in front of home plate or behind the rear cones of the kicking box. Its an automatic foul but if he kicks it in the air it may still be caught for an out (and any baserunners may tag up). If the ball hits the ground, or is dropped, its just a foul ball.

Make sense? Please let me know if you have any specific rules questions.

Vegas Anyone?

Part of the fun of playing WAKA Kickball is that you
are part of a national organization and can play for
the chance to become eligible to receive an
invitation to play in Las Vegas next Fall in the
Founders Cup to determine the best kickball team
in the nation.

Invitations first go out to the division champions
around the country with preference given to those
in the most competitive divisions. If all slots aren't
filled then invitations may be given to runners up.
The Founders Cup is pretty competitive and its
amazing how some of the teams play. In order
to play in the Founders Cup, teams must use their
rosters from their championship team.

There is an alternative to the competitive Founders Cup. The Kickball Games was
new this year and it should grow next year. This is a fun tournament where each
team will play 4 games in a round robin format and awards will be given for certain
superlatives. The fun part about the kickball games is that you do not have to have
people on your regular season roster to be able to play in the Kickball Games, in
fact they don't even have to have played in the same division. In order to play in
the Kickball Games, all you have to do is have been registered to play WAKA
Kickball sometime in 2011. How great would it be to have a team or two
representing the most fun people that Freedom has to offer in Vegas next year?

If you are interested, lets start figuring it out now and making plans. You can
comment on this post if you are interested in playing. Who's interested in putting
together a team of Elvis impersonators and show girls?